It's hardware & software stupid!

I know this has been said before, but I felt compelled to write something after reading the numerous articles raiding the techno blogs after Apple's iPhone 4S release.

Everyone is so disappointed with Apple over a "spec" bump to the iPhone 4. I've read countless articles saying Android is taking over because Apple is now behind the "spec" war. Apple didn't increase the screen size, Apple didn't use a chip that's cutting edge, Apple only increased the camera & chip and wants everyone to pay a premium. Really people? Really?

On a spec to spec comparison, I'll admit Apple isn't at the top of the heap. However, Apple doesn't care about specs, nor do they only focus only on smartphones. Does HTC & Samsung build MBP's, iMacs, AppleTVs, iPods, iTouches, iPads, etc.?

Apple does more than focus 100% of its attention on smartphones. Again, it's all about the hardware & software stupid! It doesn't matter if a smartphone has a 10.6GHZ 8-core processor if the software is bogus. It's about the seamless integration and user experience. The iPhone 4 (let alone, the iPhone 4S) performed flawlessly. Furthermore, with the offerings Apple has unveiled this year, the iPhone now is even more useful.

Apple has devoted a significant amount of time in the past year on bringing their server farms online to offer the masses iCloud. Say what you want about Apple's implementation of iCloud, but iCloud is an innovative solution for the masses. Take a photo, and it's instantly pushed to all your devices! Buy a song or book from iTunes and it's instantly pushed to all your devices. Read part of that book on your iPhone and pick up at the same spot on the iPad. Make a calendar appointment and....you guessed it! Share a calendar with your friends or family. All this without the user having to think about it! No tweaking, no tinkering with complex settings...it just happens! Complete integration!

Apple has devoted a significant amount of time improving their iOS this past year. I'm not debating iOS versus Android...I'm just saying these improvements come at a cost in terms of man hours spent refining it.

iWorks...across all devices is now seamless.

Siri...the jury is out, but all indications point to a smashing industry innovation.

Airplay mirroring! AirPrint!

The list goes on and on.

The iPhone 4S WILL run the iOS software like a hot knife through butter. So what's the point of arguing over specs? I can see some wanting a larger screen...but that's what the iPad is for. Apple understands the larger screen will have an impact on battery life (user experience suffers).

These idiots love to talk about specs and how Apple is losing the battle...market shares will go down...Apple is done for...etc! What are these bloggers smoking? The user experience is so much better and only getting better. I love how my Apple devices now stay wirelessly in tune with each other. It's amazing to comprehend all the improvements Apple has given us this year.

To compare 1 of Apple's devices (the iPhone) based on specs alone is ludicrous and fails to adequately inform the reader of its unique capabilities across all Apple electronics.

The problem is, the competition (namely android) has taken the lead in HARDWARE, while also dramatically improving their open source platform. Android is no joke. Pick up a newer Android Premium device, filter out fan boy reservations, and you'll see why some people at some point can rightfully pass judgement on apple's progression with the iPhone.

Dude why does it bother you this much what other people think? If you like the 4S then get it. A lot of people are happy with it, many others aren't and it's fine for them to have their own opinions and wants.

Dude why does it bother you this much what other people think? If you like the 4S then get it. A lot of people are happy with it, many others aren't and it's fine for them to have their own opinions and wants.

The problem is, the competition (namely android) has taken the lead in HARDWARE, while also dramatically improving their open source platform. Android is no joke. Pick up a newer Android Premium device, filter out fan boy reservations, and you'll see why some people at some point can rightfully pass judgement on apple's progression with the iPhone.

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Android still falls way behind apple when it comes to usability and efficiency. Add in the massively better support and ecosystem and see where the real difference lies.

Take off your hater googles and see why apple is so successful and see why the android world has done virtually nothing to compete better in the areas that make apple a clearly superior choice.

Don't forget support too. This is why none of the android handsets ever compare to the iPhone. The hardware / software integration is beyond any of them right now and add in support and ecosystem they have no chance.

Integration, support and ecosystem is why they are getting crushed but all they focus on are hardware specs. If an iPhone 3G was the only iPhone available today it would probably still outsell any android phones

Android still falls way behind apple when it comes to usability and efficiency. Add in the massively better support and ecosystem and see where the real difference lies.

Take off your hater googles and see why apple is so successful and see why the android world has done virtually nothing to compete better in the areas that make apple a clearly superior choice.

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Hater googles? Are you judging a book by its cover based on my signature that I currently own an android device. This is the problem with posters like you. In my post, I really didn't knock apple at all. I just commented on how the competition is evening the playing field. For your information, I pre-ordered 3 iPhone 4s for my family. Before going to android, I had each and every single iPhone. Yeah, I have some hater googles on.

If I wanted to, I could go on about certain things android DOES do better than iP4. Like the fact that it took this long for Apple to get that bubble popups do NOT constitute a proper notification system. Hint: Take a look at the new iOS5 notification center. Look familiar? It's been on Android since its hay day. Maybe you should stop drinking the koolaid yourself. I've made myself rather objective. Hopefully you can follow suit.

Hater googles? Are you judging a book by its cover based on my signature that I currently own an android device. This is the problem with posters like you. In my post, I really didn't knock apple at all. I just commented on how the competition is evening the playing field. For your information, I pre-ordered 3 iPhone 4s for my family. Before going to android, I had each and every single iPhone. Yeah, I have some hater googles on.

If I wanted to, I could go on about certain things android DOES do better than iP4. Like the fact that it took this long for Apple to get that bubble popups do NOT constitute a proper notification system. Hint: Take a look at the new iOS5 notification center. Look familiar? It's been on Android since its hay day. Maybe you should stop drinking the koolaid yourself. I've made myself rather objective. Hopefully you can follow suit.

Don't forget support too. This is why none of the android handsets ever compare to the iPhone. The hardware / software integration is beyond any of them right now and add in support and ecosystem they have no chance.

Integration, support and ecosystem is why they are getting crushed but all they focus on are hardware specs. If an iPhone 3G was the only iPhone available today it would probably still outsell any android phones

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Dude there's an edit button for a reason. I don't think I've ever seen you post without immediately posting at least once directly afterwards.

You're also quite a hypocrite. You tell people to take of their hater goggles and then proceed to slander Android and ignore all it's advantages. Take your own advice about the goggles.

Lastly, if you honestly think the 3G would outsell anything today then I can no longer take anything you say seriously. The 3G was pretty much the weakest of all the iPhones.

Seems the majority are missing my point. Bloggers are writing articles all over the Internet about how piss poor Apple is becoming because of specs! Say a Sprint user wants to pick up an iPhone for the first time. He or she will be mis-led by all these articles.

If you'll read my OP in its entirety, I never once argued for or against ANDROID. The point I was trying to make, is Apple has done a tremendous amount of work this past year with iOS improvements, iCloud, Siri. Just because they don't have the latest and greatest HARDWARE release for the iPhone 4S doesn't mean they are slipping.

The consistent idiocy of mainstream media telling Apple how to do business is mind boggling. The gist of my rant is based upon the shear fact everyone compares hardware like its some sort of measuring stick towards a better experience.

I've never said I wanted anyone to like Apple or Android. I've got a ton of friends that use Android & WebOS. I personally could care less. I just think these authors are doing the consumer an injustice when they lead people to believe hardware specs determine experience. But, whatever, to each his own.

Seems the majority are missing my point. Bloggers are writing articles all over the Internet about how piss poor Apple is becoming because of specs! Say a Sprint user wants to pick up an iPhone for the first time. He or she will be mis-led by all these articles.

If you'll read my OP in its entirety, I never once argued for or against ANDROID. The point I was trying to make, is Apple has done a tremendous amount of work this past year with iOS improvements, iCloud, Siri. Just because they don't have the latest and greatest HARDWARE release for the iPhone 4S doesn't mean they are slipping.

The consistent idiocy of mainstream media telling Apple how to do business is mind boggling. The gist of my rant is based upon the shear fact everyone compares hardware like its some sort of measuring stick towards a better experience.

I've never said I wanted anyone to like Apple or Android. I've got a ton of friends that use Android & WebOS. I personally could care less. I just think these authors are doing the consumer an injustice when they lead people to believe hardware specs determine experience. But, whatever, to each his own.

The Galaxy S2 does have amazing hardware specs and from what I've read is quite a powerhouse. The point I'm trying to make is Apple doesn't need a quad-core tegra processor to make the user experience better. iOS runs beautifully on the A4 and A5 chips. What mass audience appeal will Apple gain from getting into a specs race beside the title of who has the bigger one?

Android is finally starting to get great. But I prefer iOS because of it's ease of use (everything syncs for me on all devices) and I have a lot of money invested in apps for iOS after having used it for a few years.

I agree apple is more about the experience than specs alone. But I think the issue is the average person doesn't understand what that really means. If a salesman is pushing android over iOS to someone who doesn't really know what iOS can do than chances are they will go with android. That's where apple will get hit the most in the coming years.

The iPhone itself is hardly a niche device, but the behind the scenes stuff is. Most people don't get iCloud or what it can do, they don't get Siri (or what it could become), etc. This is tech that, regardless of your choice in OS, has the potential to change the way we do things.

We can talk about Apple slipping when people stop comparing other phones to the iPhone. The specs on the 4S + iOS5 = still one of the best phone devices being sold. Not to mention it's as mainstream as it gets, so being left out of the loop when it comes to apps, support, accessories, and even repairs is non existent.

People seem to be comparing the 4S to the tons of non existent mockups and screen sizes of other devices. Soon as the 4S hits consumer's hands, I bet they will more than happy with the speed and other improvements it offers.

Don't know what the big deal is besides the initial let down of not having a bigger screen. Besides that, this is the second biggest upgrade since the 4.

Seems the majority are missing my point. Bloggers are writing articles all over the Internet about how piss poor Apple is becoming because of specs! Say a Sprint user wants to pick up an iPhone for the first time. He or she will be mis-led by all these articles.

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First off, you are obviously misinterpreting these articles if you believe anyone believes Apple is a bad company. But more importantly, why do other peoples opinions affect you so much?

If people want to pretend that 3.5" screens are the maximum size for their girly little hands then go for it. But if people want to counterpoint that by claiming that Apple should take note of the competition and given a bigger screen (or at the very least, minimized the bezel to reach 3.7") then they're right also.

I'm a Sprint user who preordered a 4S and while I can appreciate the fact that I can FINALLY get an iPhone on Sprint, I'm not going to pretend that there aren't reasons to be disappointed. Its an acceptable phone for 2010/11, but how well will this stack up in 2013? Questioning that shouldn't hurt your feelings.

These arguments for Android are the exact same arguments that the PC vs Mac people made (and still make). Apple has worked hard to remove the need to talk about specific hardware pieces, unless that part has some intrinsic benefit to the whole computer/phone/user experience.

The PC makers and now the Android-system based phone makers are taking the same tack, not seeming to understand that it's easier to compete against your rivals when you're not either racing to the bottom of price or trying to put in the fastest processor/biggest screen or whatever seems to be the tech du jour.

Apple can talk about specific tech pieces because they've had a hand in creating the tech that does have an obvious benefit to the user's experience - screen tech, GPU, CPU as examples. But their real goal isn't to have the fastest, biggest, whatever but rather offer the best user experience taking into account both the hardware side and the software side and how both interact with the consumer and the other pieces of technology people have in their lives.

That's the Apple eco-system. It's what no other hardware or software manufacturer can offer at this point. Until Google can acquire Moto and focus on producing their own hardware/software eco-system, you'll continue to see this same battle occurring. Once the acquisition happens, my guess is that you'll see Samsung, HTC and others move away from Android altogether and focus on trying to create their own software solution so they too can control both sides. Maybe Microsoft will get there first with Nokia, but they'll have to create some pretty fantastic hardware before they'll make the same kind of dent.

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